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I know I’ve written about drinks before but it bears repeating. Your wellness is important.

If you’re not careful, you can consume more than your daily recommended amount of calories just in your beverages! Somehow people tend to underestimate the amount of calories and sugar that are found in beverages.

Summer time is a popular time for cocktails on the deck, around the campfire, at the barbeque, etc. Here is a list of some of the comonly enjoyed drinks and thier average caloric content obtained from http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/facts/calories-in-alcohol/. Remember that these are generally empty calories – meaning they do not contribute nutritional value.

Gin or vodka and tonic =126

Dark rum and coke =142

Medium glass of white wine (175ml) =130

Medium glass of red wine (175ml) =120

Bottle of wine (white) =555

Bottle of wine (red) =510

5% Lager (pint) =240-50

Cider (pint) =180-250

Stout (pint) =210

Bitter/Ale =180-230

Liqueur (50ml) =100 -170

Brandy (50ml) =110

Whiskey (25ml) =55

Many non alcoholic beverages are very high in calories as well. Check out this website to see the 20 worst drinks.

The recommended intake for maintaining your weight is 2000 calories for women and 2500 calories for men. You would need to decrease the amount if you are trying to lose. You don’t want to use up your entire alotment just in your drinks.

You may want to rethink that diet pop as well. True it contains little or no calories, but that doesn’t mean it’s harmless. Artificial sweeteners give you the taste of something very sweet. Drinking them regularly means you are training your tastebuds to prefer things that are very sweet. It’s more difficult to appreciate and enjoy natural flavours when your taste buds have grown to expect the ultra sweet.

A Globe and Mail article reported on a study that found a link between diet pop consumption and health problems.

“The results revealed that people who drank at least one diet pop a day had a 48 per cent higher risk of having a heart attack, stroke or fatal cardiac event than those who reported no soda consumption.”

While further studies are required to prove that the diet pop caused the problem, I think the strong possibility of harm is enough reason to avoid it. Diet pop contributes nothing to your nutrition so removing it from your diet can’t hurt and there is a good chance it can help.

There have also been some animal studies that suggest digestion is altered causing the gut to absorb more sugars as a result of consuming diet pop. This means while you are smuggly thinking you’re not consuming any additional calories, you may be gaining weight, contributing to health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome.

If it’s the fizz you crave, try sparkling water like Perrier or S. Pelligrino. Pour over ice with a wedge of lime for a crisp refreshing beverage, or add to your wine to make a spritzer.

Now that you are informed go forth and enjoy your summer – but – govern yourself accordingly.